PreK/Preschool Thread Week of Dec 4

[hrk]

Well I didn't see a thread yet so I thought I would get us going

This past weekend was a quiet one. Logan's school had the Scholastic Bok Fair at it last week, and I volunteered to help close it up, so I was busy counting books totaling sales etc this weekend. But we got some great books for both boys and best of all my IL's offered to pay for them as their holiday gifts to the boys.
One thing we really love is we got a CD version of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. It has the story being read by Ray Charles, along with numerous versions of the story set to music. Logan wants to listen to it all the time and Ari loves the beat and just bops to it.
Sunday we took the boys to the indoor swim center and had a very nice time. I think Logan is definitely ready for un-parent assissted swim classes as he can swim head down, use his arms and legs and make it about 8 or 9 body lengths, so I have to register him for the winter.

DH and I have finished touring the private schools in the area and providing Logan gets into one, we will definitely be moving him for pre-K, so this will most likely be his last year at Goddard, which has done wonderful things for him, but I think he has outgrown the school now.

This week should be nice and quiet which I will treasure since things get crazy again next week and don't stop til the end of the year then.

Hope everyone else is well.
Heather

[LaraW]

Hi Heather!

Well, today is Natalie's birthday! We have an official 3 year old in our house. She's been cute, asking every day if today is her birthday. We finally told her that when she woke up and there were balloons in her room, that it would be her birthday.

So, DH and I put some balloons in her room last night, and wouldn't you know, she woke up at 11:00 and came down and said "Daddy, there are balloons in my room!" DH put her back to bed, but we still heard her up there for a while after we went to bed.

She was pretty excited this morning, and opened some gifts. She was a little confused about the gifts though, because one she picked up we said was from Colin, and she tried to give it to him. He gave her a Nemo washcloth for the bath. She also got some glow-in-the-dark stars for her room, and a dolphin calendar. I know that sounds like a strange gift, but she picks it up every time we're at the grocery store, and asks if she can have it. We've always said no, with the idea we'd get it for her for her birthday. She also has a puzzle to open later and some gifts from my sisters and grandparents.

So, now I'm waiting to see if the potty switch has been flipped ;) She's actually been doing pretty good the last 10 days or so. She's had a few accidents but does seem to be more uncomfortable in her wet clothes.

Heather, do you have to get on a waiting list for school for Logan? If you don't mind me asking, why did you decide to go the private school route? I don't know what we'll do. I have very little experience with public schools b/c I went to a private school for K-8 but then went to a public high school. DH went to public schools all the way through, and his mom taught 2nd and 5th grades in the public school system for years. Our church has a school associated with it, as do a lot of Catholic churches, and so if we don't end up sending our kids to a Catholic school, they will have religious education probably 1 day/week after school.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

[RunnerKim]

Happy Birthday Natalie!!! And fingers crossed that the potty switch has been flipped. Cute idea about the balloons - but I could totally see Lainey doing the same thing as it's not unusual for her to wake up at night anymore (fortunately she goes right back to bed).

Heather - glad you're finding good school options for Logan. That must be a relief to have that well in hand. Book fairs are my complete downfall.

I've been reading the Read-Aloud Handbook that was recommended on another thread to me and it's re-engerizing my reading to the kids (particularly to Jamie who often gets the short end). We've always read to them every night but Jim Trelease (author) certainly makes the case for just how important reading is. Simply seeing all these books mentioned is having a bad effect on my wallet (espeically since i'm trying to add some for my nephews)!

I have decided to give up Charlotte's Web. I'm waiting to see if Lainey will let me though. Even though she has trouble following it she wants me to read it. She's getting some of the Magic Treehouse series for Christmas so I think I'll wait to start another "not all in one sitting" book until then. We have lots of Christmas and winter books to read now anyway.

Helene - Trelease has a section about "sheltering" kids with your reading material choices. I don't have it with me now but I could write up a few of the more pertinent paragraphs if you're interested. He basically says not to do it and to take on books with these more "meaningful" subject becasue basically we live in a world where these things happen. He does mention that certain topics are not appropriate for reading aloud with older kids or specifically to a group of kids (book is written to both parents and teachers) so he's not suggesting reading a book that has an incest theme to a class of 5th graders (whereas it would be fine to do that one on one).

We had a busy weekend going to get our tree (go to a tree farm about 40 minutes away) and getting it set up. Lainey had fun helping to put the ornaments on this year. Jamie look and points and makes sounds for the trains/animals. Lainey's working on her letter to santa but since I'm having her write the whole thing we didn't get it finished. But she's asking for a kite, small legos, dinosaur movie and "4 year old scissors." She told me this morning that she would be happy with whatever Santa brought her...as long as it wasn't for an adult.

Is anyone doing craft gifts with their kids this year? Last year I had the kids put handprints (fabric paint) on a t-shirt for DH but I'm at a loss this year. I think for the grandparents I'm going to have them make pencil holders. I have a couple of cans saved and either I'll do the handprints on paper and glue that on or get Lainey to draw a picture (not something she does often). Have them paint the cans too (although won't see much but the edges). I'll probably put the paper on with modge podge so it'll be a little protected.

Jamie came down with a fever outo f the blue Sunday night. He just started zoning out as if he were very tired (which we just assumed he was because we'd been at playgroup with lots of activity). I think maybe he'd been having so much fun that it wasn't until we put him in the car and he slowed down that he started feeling bad. But he had 101 on Monday morning. Seems to be fine now. Strange.

Kim

[sage]

Just delurking a minute for a gift idea.

My nephew was never much of a "sit down and draw" type kid---but one day I had him at work with me (he was about 3) and he drew two line-drawing pictures in pencil (one rocket and one house). I took some Elmer's glue and traced over his lines and then used glitter on top of that. I bought a ready-made mat and frame at Hobby Lobby and gave one of each to his mom and dad.

I think they still look really cute 7 years later...

Just an idea if she felt like doing a line drawing of some sort.

[LaraW]

Kim, hope that Jamie is feeling better. When I got to daycare this morning, there was a sign up in Colin's room that a child there had come down with that foot, hand and mouth disease. Hopefully we'll dodge that bullet.

I was thinking that I might have Natalie make bookmarks for everyone this year. My thought was to have her draw on sheets of construction paper, and then cut those into strips, maybe 2 inches wide, laminate them and punch a hole in one end and put a yarn tassle through the hole. I'm not sure where I'd get them laminated, though. Is that something you can get done at Kinkos?

OK, I have another dilemma too. With Natalie's birthday being early in December, I've always taken her for pictures right around her birthday. Then, I wrap them up and give to everyone as gifts from her. Colin's birthday isn't until January 17, and I'm not really sure what to do. It doesn't seem right to take him for 1 year pictures when he's not even 11 months old. I would need to do them this week for them to be back in time, and I just got his 9 month pictures done and sent out about a week ago, and so everyone has recent pictures of him.

When he's a little older I think I'd be OK with doing his pictures a little early to be able to give them as gifts. I'm not sure what to give everyone "from" Colin and it seems a bit weird to give pictures of 1 kid but not the other.

My thought was a note done in crayon that says "Dear Grandma, I'm not a year old yet but when I am I will send you a picture of me. Merry Christmas Love, Colin"

[Sarah428]

Lara - Happy belated birthday to Natalie! I put balloons on Ella's chair for her birthday so she saw them when she had breakfast, cute idea. I think the note from Colin is a cute idea too, I understand what you mean about getting them done a month early.

Kim - How do you find time to read these reference books?!? I haven't had a minute to do any leisure reading or knitting since Owen was born. I'll have to check out that Jim Trelease sometime before he turns 5! ;) How is Jamie today?

Heather - Thanks for mentioning the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom CD. Ella loves that book so I'm going to have to pick that up. Enjoy your quiet week!

I had yesterday off to have Owen's 6 month pics done. Got there early only to find out they were an hour behind. Went in and I told her that he can't sit up long on his own and of course she wants him in a sitting position leaning on the stool. He keeps falling over and I suggest a different position. Then he keeps putting his hands in his mouth so she gives him a glitter covered pointy star ornament to hold...gee that's a great idea! I snatched it away before he poked his eye out with it! She got 4 shots and all were awful. They told me to come back after his nap so I did some shopping, came back and found out they were now 2.5 hrs behind - no thanks! I think I'm done w/ driving the hour to have his pictures taken at JCP, not sure what the alternative is but it's not worth it.

Ella was a perfect angel this morning, she kept saying things like "Did you see that santa? I put my shoes on without whining" :p I told her Santa has a magic eye and can see everything she does...only to have her ask why he only has 1 eye! :D

Happy Hump Day!
Sarah

[RunnerKim]

Yes Kinko's does laminating - you pay by the sheet so you can get several bookmarks done at one time. I don't remember but I was thinking it was around $3/sheet. I do a bookmark for DH for father's day where I put about 6-8 pictures on it (double-sided) from the past year that are particularly "fatherly". You do have to be careful about heat laminating photographs because it can melt them but paper drawings won't be a problem at all. I didn't have any trouble the first couple of years I did it but last year I did.

Lara - your idea is exactly what I'd do. I'd include an "IOU" note for Owen's pictures. Can Natalie draw a picture of Owen and you could write something on that and include it if you wanted to be cute about it.

Sage - that's a good idea. But it would probably be reversed in my house. I would have to draw the picture and then Lainey would be thrilled to trace it in glue and put stuff on the glue. More crafty than arty I guess. She has said she'll draw a picture so I'll how that goes. I can always fall back on handprints. I'm going to start a list of ideas so I can get started on it a little earlier next year.

Jamie's back to normal now. Thanks for asking. He was pretty cute when I went to pick him up yesterday - he got all excited when he saw me and then he ran and "hid" which basically means he plops down on the floor somewhere.

I've been staying up way too late at night which is how I get my reading time in. Both kids are down by 8 (ideally more like 7:45) and sleep all night. I should do more housework but other than getting the kitchen/table cleaned up I let it slide until the weekend.

I'm going out for lunch today - my birthday lunch almost a week late! DH and I like to celebrate by going out to lunch since we both work downtown and there are so many good restaurants (and eating out is a treat for us). Jamie was sick for my actual birthday (or rather he'd been booted from daycare but wasn't really sick) and then he really was sick on MOnday when we'd rescheduled it and so I'm hoping 3rd time is the charm. Jamie messed up our anniversary lunch plans too - how does he know?!

Kim

[HRJ]

Happy belated birthday to Natalie!! Sounds like she had a good day -- dare I ask how the potty situation is going?

Lara, regarding the photo question, I think any way you go will be OK -- the idea of sending the note and following up with photos is very cute, but, I don't think it would be a big deal if the photos weren't taken exactly on his first birthday -- except, I guess photo places are pretty hectic this time of year?

Speaking of which, sorry you had such a had time at JCP, Sarah.

For kids who like Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, and use the computer -- we had a toddler/preschool computer software game for Victor that was based on the book -- he went through a stage where he really loved it. There's also a Scholastic Video version (VHS or DVD) based on the book, too.

Kim, I actually ordered that read-aloud book after reading about it on that other thread -- it's in one of the boxes from Amazon that are sitting in my basement at the moment, waiting for some time when Victor isn't around so I can open them and wrap whatever needs to be wrapped. I'm really interested in hearing what the author has to say.

Hope Jamie's feeling better!


Heather, glad to hear you've made some decisions about school for Logan. I love book fairs.

I actually went to an interesting sales party the other night -- a friend is a sales consultant for Barefoot Books, a children's book publisher -- they do a lot of beautifully-illustrated books, with an emphasis on multi-cultural topics. They do sales parties, like a Pampered Chef kind of thing. Not only was the party fun, but I ended up buying a bunch of really nice books for Victor.


We've been thinking that instead of keeping Victor at pre-K over the summer, we'll send him to summer camp (the teachers/director at the pre-K actually recommend that for the kids who will be turning 6 over the summer, before kindergarten), and I really need to get started figuring out where to send him -- I think sign-ups start sometime between Feb. and April. Lots of options -- do we sent him to a "basic" type of camp through the local Rec. dept, or someplace that would have daily swimming lessons and more structured activities? Someplace close, where we'd be doing drop-off and pickup ourselves, or where he'd need to ride a bus? And if he takes the bus, how far? (I've heard great things about two Jewish day-camps around here, but both would involve riding the bus for at least 45 minutes each way, and I don't know if I'm comfortable with the idea of him being so far away during the day yet.)

There's an orientation meeting tonight from our local school district, for parents of kids who will be going to kindergarten next year. (We're definitely going to send Victor to public school). I'm interested to hear what they have to say.

Victor is home sick today -- he's been home since Monday, actually. It's a stubborn upper respiratory thing (at this point, mostly like a bad cold) that's just hanging on. He's miserable from being sick, and, more so, from being cooped up inside since the weekend. Yesterday, he "wrote a letter" (he dictates, I write) to his friends at pre-K, telling them how much he misses them. Then he drew hearts for his teachers, and wrote each of their names in them.

I did manage to get our photo calendars done yesterday while I was home, and ordered them for my mom, brother and MIL for holiday presents. I used Kodak Gallery (used to be Ofoto).

Helene

[MrsReber]

Hi! I've been so busy with work! It's amazing.

Heather, just wanted to comment on Logan outgrowing Goddard. I agree with you- Casey was at Goddard for before/after care for kindergaren. She was 5 and started school, but she was still in a class with 4 year olds. I know they didn't have the room and it wasn't truly and "enrichment" program. She could've used something more. Of course the full day kindergarten we have has been wonderful. I can't believe the stuff she's been learing.

I'm excited- I get to go and help with the Christmas party at Casey's school next Thursday. Brenden will be coming along, too. He's pretty excited. I'm happy to be helping out. This is half the reason I wanted to move so badly- to be more involved with the kids activities. So far, so good. DH is having a hard time adjusting now that he's back at work. I hope that passes soon. He was so happy when we first got here and he didn't have to get up to work (who wouldn't be?) It's not that he doesn't want to work, he just hates having to answer to someone all the time (like the rest of us!)

I'll be back to read alll the posts later! Kim, hope you have (had?) a great birthday lunch!

[MrsReber]

Here's an interesting situation. Casey brought in Brenden's dream catcher for show and tell earlier this week (they had to bring in D things). While at school, Casey got into an argument with another little girl. The teacher separated them. While they were at separate tables, the other little girl took scissors and cut up the dream catcher. She got in a lot of trouble, apparently at school and at home. Yesterday, Casey came home with $6 in a ziploc bag. The parents of the little girl made her give Casey all of her "tooth money."

Well, the dream catcher was a favor from my friend's wedding shower- we took about 10 of them home. It was no big deal to me. I pulled out another one for Brenden that day. Granted, the kids were a little upset and Casey felt bad because Brenden let her take it to school. He was frantic, thinking all his bad dreams would come back. I told him that the other little girl would now own the bad dreams. He liked that.

So, do I keep the $6? It just seems like a lot. DH thought so, too. But it wasn't an accident. It was a deliberate act and I think the parents are trying to teach the girl a lesson. Do we give back half the money with a note? Casey, of course, wants to keep the money. If it had been an accident, I'd never take the money. I'm just confused. Seems like way too much for something that was free, but I understand the other parents wanting to do the right thing and teach their child a lesson. Hmmmm...

Helene, that's so sweet that Victor wrote to his friends and teachers at school! I hope he's feeling better.

Kim, I hear you on the books! We have so many books that we have no place to put them. People are always buying books for our kids. Then we had 2 book fairs (one in NJ and one in VA!) We do read each night and now Casey reads, too. If we read at least 5 nights each week for 15 minutes each night, at the end of the month we get a coupon for a free pizza at pizza hut (personal pizza) We met the goal for November. I'm surprised at how few of the children got a coupon.

Well, time to start work! That's what I like about working from home. I'm still in my pj's!

[tbb113]

Susan - I would call the mother and explain to her that you don't need the money since you received them for free and you had spare dreamcatchers to replace the one that was destroyed. Ask her if she would like the money back. My guess is that she will say no...but you never know.

[RunnerKim]

Susan - I'm so glad things are working out well for you in VA and I'm sure your DH will adjust. it's probably also hard from him to leave home and go to work when you get to stay home after years of both of you leaving the house.

It sounds like those other parents are handling the situaiton really well imho and you so often hear of parents not dealing with their kids behavior these days! I'd certainly call the parents if for no other reason than to say no hard feelings and offer the money back. I think having the conversation with the other mom would probably really make her feel better, she has to feel fairly mortified (at least I know I would if Lainey did that and it would put me at ease to know the other Mom wasn't thinking horrible things of me/my child and that the item wasn't cherished and impossible to replace etc.). If you keep the money, what will you do with it? That could be an important lesson to Casey too. You could buy a book for her classroom (since you could replace the item for free) - maybe a book about 2 girls that have a fight and become friends or something. Or maybe you feel the money is technically Brenden's.

Helene - I know just what you mean about things sitting in boxes. This book sat in the shipping box for 3 days before I got around to opening the box.

I had on my bookshelf (no idea where it came from) a book titled More Stories for Under 5 Year olds and it's a collection of stories that are about 6 pages long. One or maybe 2 sketches per story. I think they must all be British or at least the first 2 have been so we're learning words like lad and mackintosh. I'm finding this is a good step in expanding Lainey's reading attention span. We get about 2/3 of the way through on the morning bus ride and finish on the way home. This morning's story dealt with 2 young kids who did something wrong and then felt ashamed. A word Lainey didn't know. But while dropping her off this morning she did something that made her feel ashamed (pulled Jamie away from something and he fell down) and her teacher talked with her (so she immediately hides). So I talked with her afterwards about that feeling she had was being ashamed. Being able to label it really seemed to help her deal with it.

Speaking of learning new words - with reading the Lion, the With and the Wardrobe to my nephews we keep reading about Turkish Delight. I need to see if I can find a recipe or figure out what that is.

I hope Victor is feeling better soon. 45 minutes on the bus does seem like a long time. I assume those camps would be available in future summers (or had what you heard been specific to being great for 5/6 year olds?). Summer camp kind of scares me because of the logistics of it - seems they're all done weekly and making sure each week is covered if you're picking and choosing different places (which seems to be at least somewhat common around here - this week child goes to Parks & Rec (cheaper) and next week to the science museum camp etc.

I have the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom video but we've never watched it (another hand-me-down) - have you seen it? The books is one of Lainey's favorites - well she doesn't really have favorites but it's one she enjoys. I recently picked up the paperback version which has a whole second half to it so we're enjoying it allover again.

Kim

[Sarah428]

Susan - Although I agree that $6 for a free item is a lot I think if you just send the money back you'll be stepping on the toes of the other parents who are trying to teach their DD a leason. I ditto everything Kim said, especially phoning the parents and thanking them and getting a book for the classroom in a great idea.

[HRJ]

Susan, it does sound like the other parents are trying very hard to teach their DD a good lesson. I agree with the idea of calling the other mom and offering to give the money back, since the dreamcatcher was free and easily replaceable -- if she refuses to take the money back, maybe you could have Casey/Brenden buy some sort of small toy and donate it to Toys for Tots, or something like that, so that the money ends up going for a good cause?

Kim, Victor sent through a stage where he was obsessed with the Chicka Chicka DVD -- it's very nicely done, if I recall correctly.

Re: Turkish Delight -- I'm not sure, but I always guessed it was something like Turkish Taffy? (Come to think of it, it's been years and years since I've seen Turkish Taffy for sale in a store -- do they still make it anymore?).

One of the books I ordered at the Barefoot Books party I went to earlier this week is called "The Story Tree," and it sounds somewhat like the book you're describing, with stories about 6 pages long -- the catalog description said it was for kids 4-8. I also ordered a similar book with short stories about pirates, and another with short stories about knights and castles. I can't wait for the order to arrive.

I'm pretty sure that we won't end up sending Victor to one of the day-camps that are 45 mins. away, at least this year -- yes, I'm sure they'll still be an option when he's older. One of the camps has a special program for kids entering kindergarden that sounded really good, but, the distance is too much of an issue.

There are a lot of people around here who send their kids to lots of different camps all summer, like you mentioned, Kim -- one week at Rec, another at art camp, etc. Personally, I don't think I could handle that -- too many details for registration; having to do drop-off/pick-up at different places all the time, etc. More importantly, I don't think Victor could handle it that well, either -- at this point, he needs more stability. As it is, he's going to have several transitions, first to day-camp, and then to kindergarten in the fall. Whatever camp program we pick, I want it to be one he can go to for at least 4-6 weeks, and where there will be some continuity with the counselors, activities, other kids, etc. (I'll probably take off 2-4 weeks during the summer, so that we can go on a family vacation, and then have some down-time at home.)

Victor is feeling better -- still coughing a bit, but so are half the kids in his class. He went to school today, and seemed very glad to get back there.


Anyone have any suggestions about buying doll clothes? I posted on Other Stuff but haven't gotten much of a response. I have a friend who lives in another part of the country; we buy Hanukkah gifts for each other's kids. She said her DD would like some clothes for her dolls -- 15-inch and 17-inch baby dolls. The online selection at Amazon, Target, etc is pretty limited. At this point, I really don't think I'd have enough time to buy something at a brick-and-mortar store and ship it (Hanukkah starts Dec. 15), so I was hoping to find a good, reliable online site.

Helene

[Laura]

Anyone have any suggestions about buying doll clothes? I posted on Other Stuff but haven't gotten much of a response. I have a friend who lives in another part of the country; we buy Hanukkah gifts for each other's kids. She said her DD would like some clothes for her dolls -- 15-inch and 17-inch baby dolls. The online selection at Amazon, Target, etc is pretty limited. At this point, I really don't think I'd have enough time to buy something at a brick-and-mortar store and ship it (Hanukkah starts Dec. 15), so I was hoping to find a good, reliable online site.

Helene

Delurking the doll clothes. I know that American girl now has baby dolls that are 15", and they have wonderful, albeit expensive, items. You can check here http://store.americangirl.com. The baby dolls are called bitty baby. I spent a lot of money there when DD was younger.

[MrsReber]

Finally! I was having trouble logging on here yesterday.

First of all, thanks for the advice. Sarah, I agree, I felt like I'd be stepping on mom's toes if I gave the money back. I know she's trying to teach her child a lesson. Helene, I like the idea of buying a toy to donate and Kim, I like the idea of buying something for the classroom. I'll have to think about that. There's a class list with all the names, phone numbers and emails of all the parents, but it hasn't been put out again. I added my name to the list as the teacher asked, but she hasn't updated it so I don't have all the information yet. I was hoping to have it before the holiday- the break starts next Friday.

Helene, my neice had those dolls, too. You can spend a fortune on clothes. I got some on line. I can't remember the exact name- I did a google search. I think it might be hertiage doll clothes or something like that? My brother says you have to be careful with the imitation American Girl clothes because some of them don't fit right. The ones I bought seemed to work, though. If I can find the exact name, I'll post it here.

Goddard had the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom CD. The kids loved it. I never heard it, but Casey would sing it every now and then. They still love the book. Casey can read it on her own now.

[HRJ]

Thanks, Laura, for delurking on the doll clothes, and thanks Susan, too. I did some serious internet searching last night, and learned that the world of dolls and doll clothes is indeed a very complicated place -- I learned all about Bitty Babies, and Maxi Muffins, and all the particulars of which clothes fit which dolls. Who knew? Being a girl myself -- and I *loved* dolls as a child -- I thought buying doll stuff would be pretty simple. But, no.

I talked to my friend last night, and she said that her DD would probably also enjoy a "standing" doll -- so I ended up getting her a Gali Girl, which are sort of Jewish "American Girls" -- 18-inch dolls that are based on periods in Jewish history, that come with their own books, historically accurate clothes and accessories, etc. (They're not made by American Girls -- just borrowed the concept). It also comes with a matching Star of David necklace (or maybe it's a bracelet -- I can't remember) for the girl and the doll. I think it's a brilliant idea --I would have loved having something like that when I was a kid.


On the subject of books, I just wanted to mention our favorites, the Frog and Toad series, by Arnold Lobel. Each book is a collection of four or five very short stories -- when we read them before bed, we can handle about three a night, although there have been times, especially if we're reading during the day, when we can easily finish a whole book at one sitting. They are so delightful, IMHO. This coming spring, one of the children's theaters around here is going to be performing a musical based on the books, "A Year with Frog and Toad" -- I definitely want to get tickets to see that.


Anybody been to Disney on Ice? It's going to be in Boston the weekend between Christmas and New Year's -- I was considering getting tickets. Is it worth it?

BTW, I posted a photo of Victor over on the Holiday Photo Thread on Other Stuff. Sarah, I loved the photos you posted of your kids, and you and your DH! Anyone else posting there?

Helene

[MrsReber]

Helene, my mom bought tickets for Disney Princesses on Ice last year. Both kids went along with me, my mom and my 14 year old neice. My kids liked it- well, Casey LOVED it! It was enjoyable, definitely. I don't know if I would've gotten tickets on my own, though. The show was pretty long with an intermission. However, the kids wanted stuff, as usual, and everything cost an arm and a leg! So overall, it was fine and the kids had fun. We went to the Meadowlands to see the show. I don't know if the venue near you is smaller or not. (gee, none of that was much help, now, was it??)

I haven't posted on the picture thread. I shoud get on there- I have some pictures over at Imagestation that I could actually post. Took me forever to upload them.

[JoanneOR]

Helene, I couldn't see the picture of Victor on that thread. Sarah, I loved your pictures! The one of Owen with the candy cane is priceless! If I could actually get my act together and take a holiday photo of the kids, I'd post it! Our house is in more disarray (is that a word??) than normal, if that's possible. :rolleyes: We're having the kids' floors refinished so all their furniture/stuff is in the living room/dining room. If they can finish today we'll be able to hopefully get everything back together and the house somewhat organized and then I can decorate and take a holiday photo. But, it's good to get it done. We took up Ian and Colin's carpet - it needed to go and they have nice wood floors underneath. So, we're getting the hallway and Caitlyn's room and some stairs done at the same time. The boys have been sleeping in the basement and me and Caitlyn in our room. Although tonight we can't walk on them, so I think we're all going to a hotel.

We've never gone to a Disney show, but kids do seem to like them.

Susan, it's refreshing to hear how the parents handled the girl in Casey's class. Although I was wondering how a kindergartner could have that much tooth money already! I think it's a great idea to buy a book or something for the classroom.

Jameson had his first band concert last night. It was actually really good. The teacher did an amazing job with these kids. They're all beginners and there's about 100 of them. They've only been playing about three months. Jameson loves it, so he's staying in after the trial period which ends this month.

Hi to everyone else! Not much time to post, just wanted to stop in!

[Sarah428]

Sarah, I loved the photos you posted of your kids, and you and your DH!
Thanks! I'm not thrilled w/ the family shot because my posture was awful due to the pointy rock I was sitting on but DH insisted we use it. I couldn't see Victor's pic either:(

Sarah, I loved your pictures! The one of Owen with the candy cane is priceless!
Another thanks! That's one of the shots I took of Owen just hours after the JCP disaster...who need JCP when I have my own props! Having just had our floors redone I'm amazed your still in the house! Glad to hear that Jameson is enjoying the band!

Medical Question:
Ella has these tiny dots right under her eyes, it almost looks like someone took a very fine point red marker and put freckles on her. She mentioned last night that her eyes hurt but I'm not sure if that's really the case of if she was just trying to stay up later. Any thoughts?!?

Have a great weekend everyone...I'll be painted kitchen cabinets all weekend!
Sarah

[MrsReber]

Susan, it's refreshing to hear how the parents handled the girl in Casey's class. Although I was wondering how a kindergartner could have that much tooth money already!



Joanne, DH said the same thing! Casey hasn't even lost a tooth yet!

[tbb113]

Some tooth fairies leave $5.00 for the first tooth and then $1.00 a tooth for every subsequent tooth (or so I'm told). The tooth fairy in my house was on a much more limited budget :D

[JoanneOR]

Well, we're officially out of the house. DH said they started applying the finish and the smell was just awful. So, he booked a room at the Hilton and told me to just meet them there after work. I don't have any clothes with me! Gee, might have to leave a bit early and buy something. Darn! ;) I was smart enough to leave my glasses and contact case on the dining room table, so I can run in and get those. But my clothes are upstairs.

We actually do give $5 for the first lost tooth. Some of our friends thought we were nuts, so I didn't think most people left that much! Then we usually give .50 for the rest. Unless there are extenuating circumstances. Like when Ian knocked out one of Jameson's loose teeth with his knee when they were wrestling around. He got a $1.00 for that one. ;)

Sarah, the picture of Owen looks just as good as any "professional" one. I've had nightmarish situations at photo places, too. That's why I dread going and started doing our Christmas photos at home. It does get easier as they get older, if that helps. I did take Caitlyn to JCP for her 3 year old pictures and it went really well since she understood what was going on better. I don't know what the red dots could be under Ella's eye. :confused: Did she say her eyes hurt after you mentioned them to her or before?

[LaraW]

Hi Everyone-

What a week! I had a 4 hour long meeting on Tuesday, and its just been a lot of stuff going on this week.

Helene, I'm glad that you found a doll for your friend's daughter. Natalie has a Bitty Baby that my mom got for her a while ago (probably when I was pg with Colin) that she plays with a lot, but it spends most of its time nekked so I'm no help for clothes ;)

Sarah, great pictures of Owen and Ella and I liked the one of the whole family too. I feel for you on going to JCP for pictures. We went there on Weds afternoon for Natalie's 3yo pictures. The place is fairly close, it takes about 15-20 minutes to get there. They were running behind b/c of the family ahead of us and we waited for 30 minutes to even get the pic's taken. Then, we waited another ~30-40 minutes to be able to see the pictures. Meanwhile, the family that was ahead of us had a 2yo who kept getting in Colin's face and the parents were oblivious. Ugh. :mad: From start to finish, we were gone from home for almost 3 hours. We've always gotten good service there before, and it hasn't been too bad, but every once in a while we have to wait and it just takes forever. Luckily, the pictures we did on Wednesday turned out pretty well.

Joanne, glad you're getting your floors redone. We will be doing that at our house, probably next year. Did your DH do it himself? Would he be interested in being hired out to do ours ;) Our hardwood floors are in the kitchen and entry way, and there is an island in the kitchen to get around. I'm not sure my DH wants to mess with it.

Susan, I think you've gotten good advice on the money thing. I like the idea of buying something for the classroom.

Well, I don't think that the potty switch has completely flipped, but Natalie did tell me yesterday that she needed to go poop and was willing to sit on the potty for a couple of minutes before she asked for a diaper. I consider that to be progress. :)

Her birthday party is tomorrow - we have 13 kids coming! :eek: Lucky for me, she has changed her mind a bit about the dragonfly cake and is excited to have a butterfly cake. I can make that happen much easier :) I have stuff for goodie bags, and we still need to figure out our activity. I have 2 similar ideas for a "game" which is to do either a ladybug or a butterfly out of poster board, and have the kids tape a spot onto the ladybug or the butterfly. Kind of like pin the tail on the donkey, but no blindfolds etc.

My other idea for a craft is to just cut out a bunch of butterflies out of construction paper, and let the kids color them, glue shapes to them, etc. I want this to be as simple as possible, and we have some restrictions on what we're allowed to do in the room. The other thing is that its at a children's museum and there is lots of stuff to do there, so if htey don't want to do the craft, they can still play.

[JoanneOR]

Lara, no, we hired people to do our floors. DH is very handy and hates to pay anyone to do anything! But, this is the one and only thing that he agrees is best to hire out. It's really tedious, I guess. It's funny, though, the guys left their equipment at our house overnight and DH used it to sand some of the trim. I wonder if they noticed. Although I was a bit annoyed at DH. I knew that there would be alot of dust and there certainly was. Everything in the house is covered in a thin layer of it. I was annoyed because there is a sliding door that cuts off the living room/dining room from the rest of the house. If DH would have thought to shut it, there wouldn't be any dust in those rooms. But, he didn't and it's a mess. Oh well. I didn't say anything about it. I did say I wanted to hire a cleaing lady when this was done to really get rid of all the dust. I probably wouldn't as good of a job. DH just rolled his eyes. :rolleyes:

Happy Birthday to Natalie!! Good luck with the party. The activities sound good. Is that 13 three year olds? :eek:

[LaraW]

Is that 13 three year olds? :eek:

No, some of them are still 2 :eek: :eek: :eek: :D

[Molli526]

Joanne- I was in Chicago this week for work and thought of you. Actually at the Hyatt O'Hare, so not downtown, but we did hit Woodfield.

Kim - Thank you for reminding about The Read Aloud Handbook. Charles LOVES to read. He will happily sit for 30 minutes to be read to. Henry doesn't have the patience, which is to be expected, for the books Charlie likes, so he doesn't get as many stories read. DH and I are both trying to make a bigger effort for Henry to hear age-appropriate stories.

Helene- We are big Frog and Toad fans here too. B&N labeled them with their logo so they are much cheaper there. Victor is a handsome little boy :)

Sarah- Your kids are cute! Did you go to JCP in GR? I will have to find out which one my DB/SIL take their kids too - they live very close to you and I don't think the JCP they go to is more than 30 min from them. They have had great experiences when they go.

Susan- I am glad things are going so well for you in VA. I totally understand your excitement about helping out at Casey's school. I get to help at Charlie's pre-school party. I am also going to do an art project next year (totem poles) and possibly copy Helene and do the ice cream thing too :)

Lara- I can't believe Natalie is 3! Yay for potty progress. Have a great b-day party!

We had a nice potty experience today. Charles spent the day with my parents - he does ~ 1-2x a month. My mom bought him some Thomas underwear b/c she bought some for our niece and knew we had tried the whole potty training thing. Charlie saw the underwear and asked to wear them. He went THE WHOLE DAY w/o an accident in the underwear at their house!!!! My mom asked ~ 30 minutes if he had to go and he would tell her when he did and would do it. DH was so amazed when he went over ther for dinner ( I didn't get back until later tonight) I am shocked. We had decided to wait until summer b/c a few weeks ago when we tried it went no where. I think it is helping that his cow (a lovey) Moo is the "baby" who wears a diaper, and eats cereal and peas (like Henry) and gets pumped breastmilk in a bottle - oh from the mouths of babes!